Building automation systems have become a standard in commercial buildings including educational institutions, government installations, skyscrapers, factories, warehouses and business offices. These spaces employ a myriad of environmental controls, alarms, video surveillance devices and other components that serve the needs of the space, its managers, and occupants. One common form of automated device is the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) control system, which can include a plurality of zoned thermostats, humidistats and the like as well as various valves, baffles, fans, air exchangers, etc. that are can be interconnected with control boards and panels. These various components can be turned on or off, and otherwise controlled through a building automation system.
Such devices have been adapted to one or more common control standards—for example, the well-known BACnet standard, which is promulgated by the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE). Other standards include the X10 standard developed by Pico Electronics for in-home use in 1975, and the NEST standard, provided by Nest labs and suited for in-home use with HVAC, smoke alarms, in-home video cameras with remote viewing, etc. using a common language. These communication standards can be transmitted over a variety of wired and wireless modalities, including TCP/IP, the standard Ethernet protocol. Despite the standardization of such communication standards, many device manufactures produce their own proprietary communication standards, and interfaces for handling communications with (e.g.) BACnet enabled devices. Thus, building systems that include mixed-manufacturer installations may not be able to take full advantage of the ubiquity of any standard, as that manufacturer's proprietary interface may only function with its own equipment. Likewise, many manufacturers only provide localized control (within a building or facility), which does not allow for effective remote monitoring/control using (e.g.) Internet capable devices. The vast majority of commercial building automation devices robust monitoring and control use one of many different communication standards.